The standard height of a basketball goal is ten (10) feet. However, this placement for the goal is frequently difficult for children and others to use. Thus, many families, particularly with small children, find it desirable to have a basketball goal at a height which is lower than the standard height. At the same time, it is desirable to have the goal adjustable to the standard height to insure that the users develop skills for use in the standard basketball situation.
For these and other reasons, there have been many attempts to design a basketball goal which is adjustable to several different heights. One design of an adjustable basketball goal employs a flexible cable and pulley which can be operated to raise or lower the goal to the desired height. The goal is then affixed at that height by tying off the cable. Disadvantages to this type of design are that adjustment is very slow and the cable often experiences a short life span because of its constant exposure to the weather. There is also the danger that injury could result if the cable breaks while the goal is in use.
Another design for an adjustable goal employs pivotally mounted parallel bars which connect the basketball backboard to a rigid mounting device such as a pole. The parallel bars combine with a basketball backboard and the rigid mounting device to form a parallelogram. Since the bars are pivotally mounted, they allow the backboard of the basketball goal to move to several different heights, while remaining vertically oriented. Typically, once the basketball goal is at the desired height, it is secured in place by tightening one or more bolts or other securement devices which lock the parallelogram in place.
One of the disadvantages of this type of device is that adjustment of the basketball goal requires the use of a ladder or similar device to enable one to reach the securing devices to change the height of the goal. It may also be difficult to change the position of the goal if it is necessary to support the weight of the backboard and the supporting arms while the adjustment is being made. It is also possible that the securing devices will become loosened or displaced while the goal is in use, in which event the goal may move from its desired position.
Yet another design for an adjustable basketball goal employs the same parallelogram-type structure, except that a telescoping ratchet mechanism is employed to secure the goal in the desired position. As the goal is raised, a hinged pawl on one member engages a row of apertures in a second telescoping member in a ratchet-like fashion. This configuration permits the goal to be raised by applying an upward force on the basketball backboard, with the backboard being fixed into position when the pawl engages one of the apertures preventing downward movement when the upward force is removed. The goal can therefore be raised to any higher position from an intermediate position, but it cannot be lowered without neutralizing the pawl in some fashion. One disadvantage for this design comes for those units that require that the goal be raised to its highest position before the pawl is neutralized and the goal may be lowered.
A number of other systems have been used to secure a basketball goal at selected heights. Examples of the foregoing and other types of adjustable basketball goals are provided in U.S. Pat. No. 4,881,734 issued to Nye on Nov. 21, 1989; U.S. Pat. No. 4,869,501 issued to Anastasakis on Sep. 26, 1989; U.S. Pat. No. 4,805,904 issued to Nye on Feb. 21, 1989; and U.S. Pat. No. 4,798,381 issued to Dadbeh on Jan. 17, 1989. Many of these devices continue to use the parallelogram structure to ensure that the basketball backboard remains in a vertical position for the various heights of the goal.
Another design for an adjustable basketball goal is shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,465,957 and 5,478,068 assigned to Porter Athletic Equipment Company of Broadview, Ill. This unit also employs a parallel set of arms attached to the basketball backboard and to a mounting pole. The lower arms terminate at the pole. However, the upper arms extend to the opposite side of the pole, and attached to the extended arms is the top end of a height adjustment counterbalance. This counterbalance consists of a rectangular tube which is filled with cement or a similar material to provide a weight which counters the weight of the basketball backboard, goal and supporting arms on the opposite side of the mounting pole. The lower end of the counterbalance includes a connecting mechanism, which can be secured to the pole at several specified heights corresponding to several holes vertically spaced on a pair of brackets. In order to adjust the height of the basketball goal, the counterbalance is disconnected from the pole by removing a retaining pin, and is raised or lowered to position the goal at the desired height. Once the goal is at the selected height, holes located at the bottom end of the counterbalance must be aligned with the bracket holes before the retaining pin can be inserted through the newly aligned holes to reattach the counterbalance to the mounting pole. This design suffers from the drawback that the counterbalance and the attached backboard and goal are not connected during adjustment and are unrestrained from abrupt vertical movement, causing possible safety concerns. Additionally, the alignment hole heights do not allow a continuous range of adjustment of the goal height, but only adjustment at preset corresponding heights.
Despite the various systems that have been proposed, there has remained a need for an adjustment mechanism which is easy to operate without employing a ladder or similar device, which is durable and able to withstand constant exposure to a variety of weather conditions, and which does not pose a danger to those who adjust or use the basketball goal.